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Sunday, 29 July 2012

Letter from Kenya :My words with Francis Mwongela

MY
SPACE IS IMPORTANT TOO: NOTHING TO SMILE ABOUT MIGUNA MIGUNA’S LITERARY PROWESS

Writer:Francis Mwongela

Peeling back the mask: a quest for
justice in Kenya is one of the
books I am reading so far. The author of the book has written what is apparent
in Kenya. Maybe one of the reasons as to why he was surprised is because before
coming back to Kenya a few years ago, is that he could not tell that Kenya had
become worse of than he left sometimes in 1980s or thereabout. Political
opportunism is rife, it has been cleansed, corruption is gloried and immorality
baptized. So what is the new thing Miguna Miguna telling the world about Kenya?
To me, his memoirs are an old story retold in the same angle, same storyline
and point of view. What happened to John Githongo’s dossiers?

Once
upon a time some Pharisees, scribes, teachers of the law and elders took an
adulterous woman to Jesus and as the story is told in the bible the Holy One asked
them if the woman was ‘sinning’ alone. He wondered where the other party was.
The Master went ahead and asked them whoever did not have sin can go ahead and
pelt stones at the lady. He bent down to write with his finger on the ground
and the accusers surfaced. What he wrote however I don’t know. The story goes
on. All eyes are on some individuals to resign because of alleged ‘graft’. The
enemies of the Prime Minister Raila Odinga now are showing up. They are very
‘clean’ as far as graft is concerned. Even ordinary Kenyans who have not once
cheated on their spouses, failed to take care of their families are shouting
from the rooftops. Shame on them!

Over
this week I have also seen masqueraders demonstrate in Nairobi sending ‘boys’
fed on local brews to holler insults on the premier some even pouring maize
grains at the entrance of his offices. To me this is total bullshit. Who is
clean in Kenya? Who has not hired a relative with little education and left out
the poor qualified Kenyans? How many Matatu drivers have not given bribes to
the poor traffic policeman on the road? So what are the allegations in the Miguna’s
book? Corruption? What then is corruption if not what every Kenyan is doing day
in day out even in their kitchens?

Let
any Kenyan who feels clean stand up and be counted. The moral decadence in our
society cannot be solved by what Miguna thinks and writes about. I am not
defending anybody nor do I have any intention to do so. If you heard the media
pelt stones and condemn any corruption scandal you would imagine they are very
clean. Yet this is the most corrupt
institution on earth. Are the news stories we watch not a product of bribery
for publicity by individuals to editors and journalists?

Greed
for materialism brought about by primitive capitalism is what has gripped
humanity. Back to history the Mau Mau who fought for the independence of this nation.
Many other nationalists also did do fight. Majority died. So what? After independence
they were told to go to hell. Now it’s the sons and daughters who collaborated
with the whites are the ones enjoying what those poor Kenyans dying pushing ‘funny
funny cases’ with the British government fought for. And worse Still they are
not likely to do benefit.

The
elites cocooning themselves to steal from the poor Kenyan is nothing new in
this country. The poor stealing from each other is still an old story retold. I
overheard Miguna Miguna claim that he has received calls from all over the
world thanking him for the book. Those nations from the west calling him are hypocrites.
What have they done to Africa since independence? They have been perpetrating
wars, military coups, civilian coups and hiding thieves and stolen money from
poor Africans by their corrupt leaders. They use the same money to come and do
business and loot in Africa. I would not listen to them. They have exploited
Africa world over. What would they say about reforms and humanity? Are the
health bills brought in the United States by the democrats an example of
humanity? I tend to this is the home of hypocrisy and idiocy metamorphosing in
Africa.

What
drives politics in 3rd world countries if it’s not about my space,
my business, my wealth, me, myself and I? I love and admire one man. The late
professor Katama Mkangi, who once upon a time wanted to become the president of
this nation; However I want to differ with his socialist ideologies as expressed
in his book ‘walenisi’. Though he
feels that earth can be heaven, I feel that’s a far fetched thought. Few people
would want to go to heaven. How then do you expect them to make earth an heaven
to live in? If they want to go to heaven then why are they racists, tribalists,
greedy, corrupt, looters, killers?

Miguna
miguna however has exposed and verily said and portrayed that the problems
facing Kenyans cannot be solved by the political class of this nation if at all
he means what he says happened in Kenya. Then if that’s the case, the repetition
of Miguna Miguna is in all African states and I bet it’s in worst proportions
in the developed nations.

The
innuendos from the west are the best examples of the worst kinds of corruption
and immorality in the world. Could the west shut up and give Africa time. Could
Kenyans keep off from the politicians and solve their own problems? Farmers
should go to till their land whether they have shoes or not, teachers go to
school and impart knowledge. The police to maintain law and order and judiciary
give and ensure absolute justice. Otherwise what Kenyans think and where they
look upon to get solutions to their problems maybe is the wrong place. That’s
why Kenya remains a poor and a corrupt nation.

The writer
is a Media Consultant and Journalism Lecturer in Nairobi
mwongelafrancis@yahoo.com